Welcome to Urge Surfing.
A guided meditation for cravings and impulse control.
Urge surfing is a skill we can practice together.
A way to bring awareness to any maladaptive behaviors we are experiencing.
Allowing us to release what is no longer serving us.
This technique helps us to regain a sense of control.
A way to be fully present in the life we want to lead.
Instead of getting trapped in the old way of thinking and behaving.
That has led us to feeling stuck.
We are not going to eliminate any urges or desires.
Instead.
We will learn to ride the wave of the urge without acting on it.
We all have experience in not giving in to an urge.
Resisting scratching an itch or not saying the unhelpful thought screaming within your mind.
This practice will help you strengthen that skill.
Realizing that not every urge needs to be responded to.
Observing the craving with curiosity and non-judgment.
Recognizing cravings as temporary.
Which reduces their power over us.
Fostering self-regulation.
And thoughtful responses.
Overimpulsive reactions.
We will work together to reduce impulsivity.
To enhance emotional regulation and promote long-term recovery.
Learning to better tolerate discomfort and make healthier choices.
Mindfully viewing urges as waves Allow this practice to meet you where you are.
This is a place of understanding and support.
There is no judgment here.
No expectations.
Just a place where you can feel seen and heard.
Cravings are natural.
They rise up for everyone.
So be easy with yourself.
Let's take some time to come fully present.
Allow your ears to explore the space around you.
As you invite your breath to just naturally slow down.
Feel the support beneath your body.
Are you ready to accept the support being offered?
Notice all points of contact holding your body in this moment.
Now awaken curiosity.
Explore how your body feels right now.
Notice your head and neck.
Feel your shoulders arms and hands.
What do you discover in your chest and upper back?
What sensation do you feel in the front and back of your ribs?
Your belly and low back.
Notice your hips.
Legs.
And feet.
Noticing all physical sensations with awareness.
Now let's work together to find balance in our breath.
Inhaling to a count of four and exhaling to a count of four.
Allowing your mind to come present.
Your body to become still.
Getting grounded.
Nothing else matters right now.
Just you.
Just this breath.
Feel it moving in and out of your nose as you count Inhaling to four Exhaling to four,
Continue.
Great job.
Now let's let go of the effort of counting our breaths.
And simply invite the breath to fall in and fall out.
Allowing the breath to find its own rhythm and pace.
Urge surfing is a tool of empowerment.
We actively choose to step back into our power.
We regain our control through awareness.
Mindfully,
We welcome the wave,
From a place of feeling grounded and at ease.
So that we can see the wave arising.
As if it's on a movie screen.
Watching it rise and fall.
Seeing that it has a beginning and an end.
It crests,
Then passes away.
We don't have to get stuck in it.
We can ride the wave See their entire cycle.
They draw back,
Gaining strength.
A gritty current of wet sand giving way beneath your ankles.
Sucking back into the undertow with a hungry murmur.
Their power building.
A crest rises,
Stretches thin and glassy.
Trapping pale sunlight in its transparent arch.
It reaches its peak,
The crescendo.
Before losing its balance.
The top explodes into a blinding fringe of white froth.
Churning like snow before falling.
Crashing into the beach with a low rumble like distant thunder.
As millions of tiny bubbles burst and the water reaches up the slope of the beach.
Frothy fingers of white grabbing at the shore.
The wave starts with noticing the urge you are experiencing in this moment.
Perhaps it's an urge to move.
Or an urge to yell or even laugh.
We begin by simply naming our current urge or craving.
Observe all urges with curiosity.
A willingness to watch.
Staying fully present with your full inhale and full exhale.
Not judging the urge that rises up for you.
Maybe you feel an urge to stop.
Or an urge to fall asleep.
View the urge as a wave building.
The fuel that sets the wave into motion.
Is it food,
Or a habitual habit,
Or maybe a substance?
Get specific.
Identify the current urge you are experiencing.
No longer trying to run away or resist.
Sit with it.
Explore it.
And maybe you don't notice anything at all.
Maybe there are no urges rising to the surface right now.
That's okay,
Too.
This practice is simply here to help you in noticing urges without feeling the need to give in to them.
Pay attention to where in your body you feel any urges building.
Where is the urge manifesting in your body?
No judgment.
We are collecting data without emotion.
Like a scientist,
Curious.
Then the rise,
As the urge builds like a wave gaining momentum.
Describe the buildup.
Get really detailed.
Does this feeling have a color?
A texture.
Or perhaps a shape to it.
If you had to rate the intensity on a scale of 1 to 10,
Now we have arrived at the peak where the urge reaches its full height and intensity.
Feeling like it will never end.
No need to act,
Just observe.
What is the intensity of this craving right now?
Affirming that waves pass.
The ebb and flow.
Come back to your breath.
What has shifted?
Then breathe slowly and deeply.
Allowing the breath to simply fall in and fall out without any effort at all.
Then finally,
We arrive at the fall.
The intensity fades,
And we can breathe once more.
Watching the wave rise up.
And fall just like your breath.
Imagine the waves lapping at the beach.
As we watch the endless waves,
The highs and the lows,
It becomes clear.
Our breath.
Like the waves.
Rises and falls.
Each inhale and exhale helps us to find balance.
As the wave passes.
No need to push the feeling away.
Let it come and let it go.
Emotions like waves lapping at the beach watching.
Observing.
Rising and falling Not all desires.
Urges or impulses must be satisfied or responded to.
But if you choose to give in to the urge,
Do so mindfully.
Maintaining your control.
As you choose to respond.
Instead of getting caught up.
In an automatic emotional reaction.
Take a few moments to surf the waves on your own.
If the emotional waves become too turbulent.
Please remember your breath is your safe anchor.
To the present moment.
Come back to the safety and the steadiness of your breath at any time.
The mind is going to wander.
That's normal.
When you notice that you have drifted off into thinking.
Just notice.
Whoops,
Thinking.
And come back to the rhythmic tide of your relaxed breath.
You will hear my voice again shortly.
When you feel ready.
Allow the waves to fade into the background Begin to return your awareness back to the space around you.
Hear the sounds around you once more.
Feel the support beneath your body.
Draw your breath in a little bit deeper.
And press your breath out a little bit longer.
Steady,
Easy breaths.
Congratulate yourself for taking this time.
Building your confidence in your ability to ride the wave of the urges learning to sit in the discomfort without needing to change or fix anything.
We are here now,
Together Just watching.
Just breathing.
Tune back in to your body.
Noticing sensation once more.
And observe what has shifted or changed through your practice.
If you had to rate the intensity of the urge right now,
On a scale of 1 to 10,
What would it be?
Did your number change at all?
When you feel complete,
Blink your eyes open with a smile.
Look around your room and reorient to your space.
Affirm your ability to sense an urge and not act on it.
Impulsivity reduced.
Awareness increased.
You can return to this practice whenever you need a moment to recenter.
To ground back into the present moment.
Giving yourself the opportunity to rewire.
Through awareness,
We can begin to respond instead of react.
Mindfully choosing how we move forward.
I wish you well,
My friend.
